STICKS AND STONES
by Blasted Brains
Summary: Hellboy and his friends saved the human race by killing Nuada and left BPRD with high hopes of starting brand new lives. Three years later things are terribly different and the balance between the supernatural and the human world is about to be broken.
1. DUST TO DUST

**INTRODUCTION**

**DUST TO DUST.**

* * *

Three years passed since Ireland's lands had been stepped by Hellboy and his friends.

Three years passed since a fight that would decide the future of the human kind happened.

Three years passed since all the magical creatures cried the death of prince Nuada and his sister Nuala, who had always been loved and admired by every single creature that lived in the woods.

Three years passed since Anung un Rama made the decision of abandoning his previous life to focus on his future family.

Three years since everything ended. The world was never cornier and quieter.

For three years, earth seemed to have lost all its magic and mystic that humans tried so hard to ignore before.

But that was about to change.

The place where that battle had once happened had now become a mere and dusty tomb, where the golden army rested, asleep and abandoned just like what remained from Prince Nuada's body, forgotten by everyone…or almost everyone.

One large and slim hand gently filled itself with the grains of dust that were once Nuada's body. The grey substance ran through the hand's fingers, like it was mere water. Twelve eyes calmly blinked while staring at the small pile of dust as a small smile spread through the creature's face.

_"It is always painful to watch such a noble species turn into mere dust, Nuada." _A voice that sounded more like a whisper said, as if speaking to the pile of dust.

_"Alas, we all must face our death...eventually."_ The winged being tilted its head slightly to the left while smiling widely, revealing all of its teeth into a disturbing grin.

_"I am your death, Prince Nuada."_ The being spread out its black wings, looking like a true biblical creature.

Yet, it was hard to tell if it had either descended from heavens or crawled out of hell.

_"And I am here to give you a second chance. I am here to…"_

"Hey, Friend! Friend!" A small raspy voice shouted, echoing through the whole gigantic room.

That sudden sound interrupted the angel of death and made all of his eyes widen in surprise…and then narrow in disgust when realizing who it was.

That deficient and annoying troll kept thinking that they had some kind of friendship going on.

He saw him as a friend. But the Angel saw him more of an annoyance than anything else.

"Friend, I brought you some food. I was hopin' I could trade ya for one of those interestin' jars of yours if…"

The troll stopped talking when realizing that The Angel was on the top of the stairs (which he couldn't walk over since he lacked legs) and his eyebrows quickly furrowed in curiosity.

"Whatcha doin' up there?"

The winged creature calmly kneeled down and filled one of its hands with Nuada's ashes again.

And even though the answer he gave to the troll didn't satisfy him, the legless being spoke no more.

"_Re-writing destiny."_

The Death Angel blew the dust out of his hand, making it slowly swirl in the air, almost as if it was only smoke and soon, a small hurricane of ashes would be spinning and whirling in front of the angel who now stood up to his feet while rubbing his hands in expectation.

The feathers of the Angel's wings seemed to move with the wind produced by the twister as well as its clothing, yet none of its twelve eyes seemed to blink.

The troll watched the scene with a horrified expression as the small twister gained the size of a person.

Two pale hands would reach out from the hurricane and try to open a passage from between the swirling ashes, like they were curtains that kept him from seeing what was going on on the other side.

A head would come out from the small tornado and suddenly a whole extremely pale body would stand out from the dust and ashes, breathing heavily while letting the head hang from its neck.

Once the pale being stepped out, the twister of ashes seemed to vanish into thin air and silence would spread through the room.

All you could hear was that third figure breathing heavily, coughing and gasping for air as it fell on its knees.

The Angel of Death gave a small chuckle while removing the dark cape from his back and gently covering the naked and coughing creature with it.

"…Yeesh…! It smells like death in here!" The troll said while looking up at the two figures with disgust.

The Angel rested both of its hands on the other's shoulders titling its head to the side while grinning at the new arrival as if it was a small newborn baby.

_"It is only natural to smell that way once you've opened a passage to the other side." _

The troll only then realized, as the other two came up to their feet, who the pale and long haired being was.

It made his lower lip tremble in a mix of fear and shock.

"Holy mother of all trolls…"

The legless troll whispered as he slowly seemed to roll back in horror.

The pale man glared at him with a focused and cold look that was familiar to the legless creature.

Too familiar...

"_Welcome back to the land of the living, Prince Nuada."_


	2. CHILDREN

**CHAPTER ONE**

**CHILDREN.**

* * *

"Liz?"

Elizabeth Sherman hugged herself as she sat on the grass in front of a small wooden house where she and Hellboy had lived for the last three years.

It was a small and rather humble place to live in, but it was good enough for them.

They'd went through a lot to find a place where they'd let a red skinned man and his pregnant girlfriend live in, but they'd find that abandoned little place in the middle of the country in Scotland…

And they used to be so happy there.

The big red man calmly sat down next to Liz, trying his best to be quiet, afraid that that would make the woman angry.

But she didn't seem to even notice his presence. Her eyes just focused on the red sunset that disappeared between the green hills.

"I can't live here anymore Red."

The woman whispered while shaking her head to the sides.

Her eyes showed a sadness so deep and painful that even Anung un Rama, the son of Satan himself, couldn't stare at them without feeling his heart ache.

His left hand wrapped around her, pressing Liz closer to him, trying to comfort her without saying anything.

Hellboy had never been good with words. But when feeling her head resting against his shoulder, he knew that she wasn't mad at him.

And that was quite comforting.

"Why not?" He asked.

"Is it because of the rain? You know how the Scots are, baby. It'll get be—"

"It's not that Red."

She said in a frustrated tone, lifting her head from his shoulder and looking at his face with narrowed eyes that showed how fragile and weak she actually was, even if she tried to look tough.

"You _know_ it's not that."

Hellboy just stared at her for a couple of seconds without moving, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't upset her.

But he knew there wasn't anything he could say that would make her think positive.

All the horned man could do was kiss the side of her head while Liz grabbed his left hand tightly, her eyes filling up with tears.

"It's alright baby, it's alright." He whispered, trying to calm her down.

"It's _not_ alright Red. You weren't there…"

Her voice seemed to grow weaker and weaker, alarming the demon and making his right stone hand wrap itself around her body in an attempt of giving her a comforting hug.

Elizabeth's arms wrapped themselves around his neck as she pressed her forehead against his chest.

"…You weren't there. You didn't see them…"

He didn't want to hear what came next.

He'd heard it before…The story Liz was about to tell him.

The first time she'd told him, it had made him realize just how inhuman he really was.

Hellboy didn't like that feeling…he didn't want to feel it again…His hand pressed her head against his chest in an atempt of keeping her quiet.

But Liz needed to let it all out. It'd been years since she'd talked about it...And if she didn't, she'd eventually blow up. Literally.

"…You didn't see our children…You…You didn't see them." Liz said with a sad tone.

"They weren't babies Red…The way how they… You didn't see how…The doctors just ran away when seeing our…"

Her hands came down from his shoulders to cover her teary eyes as she sobbed.

"…Ohgod, they're dead."

The last word made Hellboy press his face against the top of Elizabeth's head, a sharp pain spreading through his heart as he felt her tears running down his naked chest.

Their babies…

His chance of having a happy life and family...dead.

Hellboy remembered that day perfectly.

He remembered how he had to wait outside of the hospital, between the shadows so he wouldn't call unwanted attention.

He remembered the rain and how oblivious he was about the events going inside.

He remembered how Liz came out of the building hugging herself, her legs shaking like crazy as her eyes stared at the ground she stepped on.

He remembered how she'd fallen on her knees and puked right in front of him and how he foolishly patted and rubbed her back, asking if she and the babies were alright.

He remembered her response.

A simple word destroyed his will to fight for his life.

_Dead_.

Those fallowing hours were the most painful of his entire life.

The description of his sons…How they had became horrible and violent beasts the very moment they left Elizabeth's body…

How the doctors screamed and yelled and how security shot the two red and twisted creatures down without blinking.

How Liz sat there, exhausted, half naked, shivering and confused…

It was all his fault.

It was his fault for not being human.

"I have to leave Red." Elizabeth said, breaking HB's flashback.

"This place has nothing to offer me."

Her head looked up at him with a serious face.

She was confident about her words…And Hellboy nodded in agreement while gently passing with his hand over one of her cheeks, cleaning away her tears.

He was about to show a small smile and agree with her. Tell her that they'd leave that place and find a new home where they could start again.

…But Elizabeth was quicker.

"…I have to go. But you can't come with me Red."

The red skinned man widened his eyes and Liz gently removed his arms from around her without looking at his face, as if afraid of awakening some kind of regret inside of her.

"What?"

He asked while furrowing his eyebrows a bit, looking down at her full of confusion.

"Oh, c'mon Liz…I know what you're feeling but…"

"Don't make this harder Red!"

She quickly spat out with a desperate tone, ready to start crying once again.

HB remained quiet while his eyes examined her expression, distress growing inside him.

Liz was going to leave…

She was going to leave and she wanted him to stay behind.

Liz was going to leave _him_.

"I'm…I'm sorry Red. I just need to think…"

Her dark eyes stared at his golden ones for half a second.

And in that small amount of time, she felt the pain and terrible thoughts that were inside his head.

But Liz just couldn't stay around him.

Not now.

She shook her head lightly as standing up. "I'm sorry HB."

Hellboy simply stared as she crossed her arms over her chest and turned her back to him, walking away into the middle of the green fields.

He couldn't believe that was happening.

She couldn't be leaving him…not after all they'd passed…

He quickly stood up, and gave a small step forward.

"Hey…Hey…! Liz! Baby! C'mon!"

She didn't answer and just kept walking forward, ignoring his desperate shouts.

He wanted to get her attention…he needed to get her attention!

She couldn't leave, she just couldn't.

"You can't just leave! Liz, c'mon don't be that way! Liz!"

His voice seemed to become more frustrated when realizing that Elizabeth wasn't stopping nor slowing down.

She wasn't even going to look back…She wasn't going to show him that she still cared about him…

She wasn't going to tell him if she'd ever come back.

"…Liz! Liz come back here!"

His cries for attention became aggressive and anxious shouts. He wasn't asking her to come back, he was ordering her.

Hellboy didn't want her to leave…and yet something kept him from fallowing her.

"**LIZ!"**

That last shout made tree leaves shiver in fear and birds fly away from their nests. But it didn't affect Elizabeth.

She began to disappear in the distance, in the middle of the trees that separated their home from the rest of the world…

She was going to abandon him…She really was…And there wasn't anything HB could do about it.

Once she walked into the woods, the muscles on the demon's legs seemed to tighten. He became all tense and a feeling of anger and despair took over his head, keeping him from thinking straight.

He ran. He ran faster than ever. He ran in a way that made the flesh of his legs burn and his throat freeze.

He was trying to fallow her.

He just wanted to have a chance to hug her one last time and tell her how much he loved and needed her.

Just to have a chance to know that he wasn't the only one who was in pain because of their separation.

He _needed_ to know she still needed him.

His right hand, the hand of the apocalypse, violently knocked trees and rocks out of his way. He didn't care if he killed anything or if he destroyed the entire forest.

HB needed to find her. He just needed to.

"Liz! Liz! Wait!"

Hellboy shouted with all the strength in his lungs, running through the woods with wide open eyes, trying to catch any kind of movement.

He didn't hear any response…God, he didn't even hear her footsteps anymore.

It was then, when he stopped running to catch his breath, in the heart of the forest itself, that Anung un Rama realized the terrible truth.

He'd lost her.

He'd lost Liz.

He'd lost his babies.

He'd lost his father.

And he'd lost his family.

He'd lost everything.

As he fell on his knees, exauhsted, Hellboy realized he'd lost his chance of ever living a normal and happy life with the woman he loved.

He'd ruined everything. And he wasn't happy about it.


	3. ROTTEN EGGS

**CHAPTER TWO**

**ROTTEN EGGS.**

* * *

Johann Krauss stood near a large river in Scotland which had a thick mist surrounding it, giving a certain mystery and mystic to the place.

Almost like it was sacred land he was stepping on.

Johann liked the mist. It made him feel somehow comfortable; like he was between more people that shared his…'not-so-solid' state; like he wasn't the only ghost there.

And he wasn't.

Scotland's woods seemed to have more ghosts and spirits than any graveyard. And those spirits and ghosts held stories and secrets than even the wisest man on earth would be shocked if revealed to him.

Both of Johann's hands hided behind his back as he whistled a small tune that seemed to have come out of some old musical. It was quite similar to that song from the Wizard of Oz; the 'we're off to see the wizard' one but with a much slower tune which gave a strangely creepy feeling to the place, even if the German was rather cheerful. Yes, because Johann was expecting a friend…

A friend who happened to be inside the lake.

"Ah, zerre you arre!"

He said with his heavy German accent as a blue creature seemed to swim closer to him in an elegant and graceful way that would make the most gentle and beautiful mermaid turn green with jealousy.

The creature calmly placed both hands on dry land and lifted itself from the water, giving a small helpless sigh when feeling his knees touching the cold grass.

"I'm terribly sorry Mr. Krauss. I guess I lost track of time down there…" Abraham said while getting up to his feet, passing with his hands over his bald and wet cranium.

"Abrraham. Forr ze last time; Ztop calling me zat and ztarrt calling me Johann! We'rre not worrk colleagues, rremembah?"

The specter said while stretching his arm, offering a white towel to the fish man who gave a small nervous chuckle.

"Oh. Thank you. Yes. You're…You're quite right. I apologize…Johann." He took the towel and placed it around his neck.

"Three years and I'm still not used to…well…_not_ working."

Abe said as he walked side by side with Johann who made a little sound, showing that he understood what he meant.

A small moment of silence came up between the two as they walked away from the lake, none of them sure of what to say to each other.

"…How…how are things back at the BPRD?" Abe asked, glancing at the other agent with an anxious stare, afraid he'd offend him in some way.

Although he'd quit his job, he still missed his books, his music, his tank…his rotten eggs.

Krauss simply gave a small upset sigh. He didn't like talking about this subject. Not with Abe. It made him feel like a spineless coward. Why? Because he'd been the only one from the four who'd stayed in the BPRD. Hellboy, Liz, Abe, they had all quitted without hesitation.

But Johann had stayed. He needed that job. He needed to keep himself busy and useful. Otherwise, he'd just pass his days feeling bad about himself and he'd end up finding out that he simply had no reason to...well...exist .

"Quite slow Abrraham. Quite slow. Afterr zat golden arrmy epizode, everryzing zeemed to calm down. No morre goblins trrying to zteal babies, no morre fairry plagues…no morre nofing."

Another moment of silence came up as Abe and Johann glanced at each other. "Well…that's…good…isn't it?" The Ex-BPRD agent asked while passing with the towel over the top of his head.

"Zats ze prroblem. I zon't know if I should be rrelieved orr worried."

Both of them looked down at the grass they stepped on as they let silence surround them once again. Now Abraham didn't know what to think of that magic inactivity either. It simply wasn't…normal. Not that he jumped with excitement every time he had to go fight some terrible magical monster. But it had been three years and not one single paranormal crisis came up. Not one.

"Whazabout heirre?"

Abe swirled his head in Johann's direction widening his dark eyes to their maximum, not understanding what he'd been asked.

"How arre you doing?"

Abe gave a soft chuckle while staring forward, a small wooden house emerging from the middle of the thick mist. It had a couple of trees next to it and a small white fence. It was like that wooden barrier kept any unwanted visitors from stepping in...but it really didn't.

"Better than I thought I would. I honestly believed I'd end up in a circus cage after I left BPRD…but…things turned out alright."

"Abraham Sapien! Is that you, boy?!"

The blue skinned man gave a small gasp as he spotted an old lady standing by the door of the house looking rather frustrated. Her curly grey hair was caught in a big and messy bun on the top of her head while one of her fragile and pale hands held a wooden cane tightly, her knees shaking slightly due to her old age.

"I-I'm coming Ms. Greenrow!"

Johann seemed rather alarmed with the entire situation. What was going on? Who was that woman? More importantly, what had Abe told her about himself and what he did? As Abe began to walk rather quickly Krauss released a small angry whisper.

"Abrraham! Watz happenin'? Who iz zat woman?!"

Abe waved his left hand nervously at the BPRD agent, asking him to be quiet.

"That's Ms. Greenrow. She lets me sleep in her attic..."

"ABRAHAM!"

"COMING! D-Do excuse me."

Johann stopped walking for a second as the blue man kept running in the house's direction. If Krauss had a face he'd be pinching his nose and closing his eyes tightly in shame.

Abraham Sapien; the only living itchyo sapien in the whole world; one of the brightest minds in America…

Lived in the attic of an old Scottish woman.

When Krauss finally arrived to the house he peeked inside the half open door to find Abe apologizing numerous times to the old woman.

"Haven't I told you to warn me before you go swimming boy?" She yelled, almost swinging her can up in the air.

"Y-Yes. I-I'm sorry Ms. Greenrow." The fish man said, almost kneeling down and bowing.

The whole situation was rather strange. Abe, half man half fish, apologizing to an old and fragile woman with a Scottish accent that was much shorter and much weaker than him…What was ever stranger was the way she seemed to speak to him. Yes, she sounded rather cranky and frustrated, but there was...love in her tone. It was almost like he was her son…Even though there weren't many resemblances between the two.

Johann's foot stepped on the wooden floor of the house making a small noise that seemed to alert the woman who quickly swirled her head in his direction.

"Who's there?" She said with her cold and serious voice.

It was then that Krauss seemed to understand a bit more why Abe had been allowed to live in that place.

Her eyes…

She was blind.

"Oh? Oh! That's a friend of mine…Ms. Greenrow this is Johann Krauss. Johann this is Ms. Greenrow."

Even if it was a rather awkward situation, Krauss did his best to sound and act politely.

"It iz a pleasurre to meet you Mizz Grreenro'." He said while nodding at her in a sign of respect, even if he knew she wouldn't see it.

"Dear lord…It sounds like you have a fishbowl over your head Mr. Krauss!"

The German gave a small upset sigh when hearing that comment. He used to be made fun of all the time back at the BPRD before he became an important member. But, thank goodness, before he could get any angrier, Abe cleared his throat and raised a finger, asking for permission to speak.

"Ahem…Mind if I take our guest into the kitchen Ms. Greenrow? Serve some tea perhaps?"

The old woman turned her head to Abe and raised both eyebrows while nodding at him with enthusiasm and patting his shoulder.

"What? Oh! Yes, yes. You do that Abraham. I'll go take a nap…Could you please check the fridge? I think the eggs are rotten again…"

Once her hand touched his skin, her nose seemed to wrinkle a bit in disgust.

"And you should really go see a doctor Abraham. You're as cold as a corpse!"

And, after that, Ms. Greenrow would walk in her room's direction, giving a small nod to Johann and closing the door behind her.

Both men gave a small sigh of relief while Krauss turned his head in Abe's direction.

If his ectoplasmic being had a face, it would be frowning right now.

"Er…yes…well…shall we go into the kitchen?" The blue man quickly said before Johann could give him a piece of his mind.

As they entered the small kitchen, Abe made a small gesture asking the other to seat on one of the two wooden chairs where Ms. Greenrow and he used to seat.

Johann calmly sat down while the other opened the fridge sticking one of his arms inside, searching for something.

"Yo' kno' Abrraham…I…I cannot drrink tea."

The bald one turned his head in Krauss's direction, blinking his eyes a couple of times, as if he was surprised by what he'd said.

"Oh, I am aware of that Johann. I'm not a big fan of tea myself. But for some reason, mentioning anything that includes the word 'tea' in it seems to calm Ms. Greenrow quite a bit."

His slim hand came out from the fridge with a small black object between its fingers.

It was only when he sat down that Johann understood what he was holding.

"Izat…a rrotten egg?" He asked apprehensively.

Abe gave a small nod. "Why yes…yes it is."

A moment of awkward silence came up between the two before Abe held his head up high and placed a rather serious expression up.

"I'll let you know Johann that rotten eggs are very welcome in Chinese cuisine…As…disgusting...as they may seem."

"Waz about ze otherrs?"

Abe widened his eyes and cocked his head to the side a bit at that question.

"How arre Hellboy und Liz doing?"

And Abe suddenly lost his appetite.

Both dark eyes looked down at the wooden table as he sat down on the free chair.

"They're…they're not doing so good Johann."

Abe paused. Johann didn't seem to react. Instead he waited for his friend to continue. And so he did after giving a small sigh.

"Liz's pregnancy ended in a rather…unexpected way."

A few of his fingers gently pressed against his lower lip, as if Abe was unsure about what he was about to tell Johann.

The ectoplasm man remained silent, not wanting to miss a bit of what Abe was about to tell him.

"Her babies died, Johann."

Even without a face, it was easy to understand by the way how the German sat up that he was surprised by the news.

"_Shyst._" Krauss cursed while crossing his arms over the table.

"When they came back home…they were devastated. I'd never seen HB so quiet in my entire life. Not since his father died."

Abraham licked his lips a bit before continuing. His voice becoming much softer than before.

"When I hugged Liz I…I couldn't help but to see what she saw…When my hand touched her arm I could see her…I saw her…"

Abe paused while blinking his eyes and shaking his head to the sides.

"Those things were nothing like babies. They…they even tried to attack the doctors." Blue said that last sentence with a nervous chuckle as if there was something funny about that situation.

But there wasn't.

"They killed them…What…what else could they do? They weren't expecting two monsters to just come out from…"

Abe paused again, trying to avoid the images that jumped into his head. He sighed. He stared at his rotten egg for a second and placed it on the table, giving up on the idea of eating it.

"HB doesn't realize how traumatizing that experience was for Liz. He has carried on but…I think she might blow up any second now."

Johann sat on the edge of his seat.

"Blow up?" He asked as if not understanding what he meant with that sentence.

"Why iz zat?" Abraham looked at Krauss with a small sad smile.

"Liz always saw herself as 'one of us'. She always thought her place was in the BPRD with us freaks of nature." He chuckled a bit when saying the last couple of words.

"But I think she has just realized how inhuman we actually are. How inhuman _he_ is. And when you love something that isn't human that much...it can't be a good thing."

His voice was melancholic as his eyes looked down. Even if Abe couldn't really recall ever having a real family, he did feel Liz's and Hellboy's pain. They were the closest thing he had to a family and it affected him greatly to know that things between them were falling apart.

Silence prevailed once again. And Johann already regretted his curious nature.

Small and weak footsteps were suddenly heard on the living room and Abe quickly shook his head and got up from his seat.

"Awake already Ms. Greenrow?"

The footsteps got closer to the kitchen and Abraham couldn't help but to give a small smile when imagining the old woman rubbing her eyes and yawning from her short nap.

"Would you like to have some…"

The figure that stood near the kitchen door made Abe choke on his own words and Johann quickly got up to his feet feeling alarmed.

That wasn't Ms. Greenrow at all. The third person in the room didn't speak…just stood there staring at both of them with sad golden eyes as small drops of water fell from his clothing and skin…Abraham gave a small sad sigh, as if he already knew that had happened even before he placed one of his hands over the big man's shoulder.

"Red..."

* * *

_Hi people. First of all, thank you very much for taking interest in my fanfic. It's the first one I make (hehe). I have a thousand ideas inside my head that I want to put in this story, but I'm not sure if I'll make it. Anyway! I'd like to apologize for any grammatical mistakes. I'm still learning the English language and sometimes things get a bit mixed up. But thanks a bunch for the correction trtlsoup2001! And Libbindy, if you keep fallowing the story, all of your questions will be answered. =)_

_Thanks again and keep reading._


	4. TREASURE HUNT

**CHAPTER THREE**

**TREASURE HUNT.  
**

* * *

"Red…" Abraham whispered when seeing the demon leaning against the wall as his golden eyes looking down at the kitchen floor.

Nobody said anything.

Nobody even dared to breathe.

Hellboy looked so fragile; like the gentlest touch could break him into tiny little pieces.

How could such a strong creature look so vulnerable?

His eyes slowly looked up to look at Abe's dark ones. He smiled sheepishly.

"Abe…"

And before anyone could say or do anything else, the demon fell down on his knees, leaving huge craters on the kitchen floor.

He looked defeated.

Abraham quickly knelt down, placing one of his hands on the big man's back and the other on his shoulder, making a foolish attempt of pulling the big red man back up…

But, not only was he too heavy to be lifted by such a skinny creature like Abe, the aquatic being felt himself being pulled away from that kitchen.

Suddenly the small room was replaced by green fields and tall trees and a beautiful red sunset.

Abe stood there as he watched Liz walking away from Hellboy,

His eyes widened as he heard the demon's voice screaming and echoing through the entire country,

His arm stretched in the man's direction as he started running after Elizabeth.

That was one thing Abraham hated about his 'gift'.

He couldn't do anything besides standing there like a fool and watching all those events happening in front of him.

Both of his eyes blinked when coming back to the present and he simply stared at Hellboy with a concerned expression.

"Oh…Red…I'm so…"

"She's not here is she?"

That wasn't a question. Hellboy already knew the answer before he even walked into that house.

The horned man glanced at his aquatic friend…and Abe simply shook his head, incapable of looking him in the eye.

Hellboy's head was hanging from his neck once again, his lips curling into a pained smile.

"I gotta find her, Abe."

He said while slowly getting up, letting Abe think that he was the one supporting his weight.

"I'm gonna find her and bring her back."

Abraham blinked and reflected on that idea. Liz didn't want to be with him. She needed to be alone, to think.

If Hellboy went after her, things could only get worse.

"Red, I don't think that's a good idea. I know y…"

The once fragile and depressed man became an aggressive demon.

The way how he stood up straight forced Abe to press his hand against the wall to keep him from falling.

"You don't think it's a good idea? You don't _**think**_?"

His voice was loud as he gave a step forward, looking down at nervous Abraham who now gave a small step back, afraid of being squished like an ant by the red man.

"I've almost unleashed the goddamned apocalypse on earth, I've fought against a freaking ballerina elf prince, practically destroyed the whole forest around our house, swam across the loch outside your house twenty times, killed two freakin' wild bears and left a few Scottish goblins unconscious…I did all of this for **her**. And you _think_ I shouldn't try bringing her back?"

His voice was loud enough to be heard all through the house.

Abe was afraid he'd wake up Ms. Greenrow…but he didn't make a sound.

He simply stared at the red man, trying to disguise just how nervous he was.

Hellboy paused for a moment. His frown softened. And he finally sighed.

"I…I know I shouldn't Abe. I know Liz needs to be alone. But I need to find her. I need to…"

Hellboy gritted his teeth.

"I need to know that it ain't over."

Silence spread through the kitchen once again as both Abe and Johann stared at the heart broken Anung un Rama.

"I gotta get going Abe…Say hi to Ms. Greenrow for me, will ya?"

He finally said before turning his back to the blue man and waving a hand at him.

Abraham could have stayed quiet.

He could have just stood there and let his friend walk out the door so he'd go on that crazy 'treasure hunt' of his.

Perhaps he'd learn how to be more sensitive and gentle through that journey. Perhaps…

But Abe was sick and tired of just standing around and watching everyone else around him change.

"You honestly think…" His voice was strangely loud, louder than Hellboy had ever heard it, but also extremely insecure.

"…That I'd just let a big red ape like you go on some crazy quest through Scotland alone?"

Hellboy would be lying if he said that he wasn't surprised by his friend's tone.

And so would Abe. His eyes blinked repeatedly in surprise as he stared at the demon.

"…No. That's out of question. We're coming with you."

And, suddenly, Hellboy was smiling.

It was not an awkward or fake smile.

It was a true and sympathetic one; he'd never seen Abraham so aggressive and frustrated before.

And that made him, for some reason, quite happy.

His big rock hand patted the aquatic being on the shoulder, making Abe almost lose his balance.

But soon they'd both be smiling. And Abe realized then that they'd reached an agreement.

Hellboy, however, quickly stopped smiling and wrinkled his nose.

"_We_?" He whispered, as if it was a foreign word.

He slowly peeked over Abe's shoulder to find Johann waggling his fingers at the horned man.

"Ho' do you do, _Herr_boy?"

Anung un Rama frowned at that sight and swirled his head in Abe's direction.

"What the hell is fishbowl doing here?"

Now, Johann wasn't a violent or reckless man…But that had been the second time today that the word 'fishbowl' had been associated to him.

And that made him feel like swinging a fist in Hellboy's direction.

"Erm…Johann is here to deliver my contact lenses. The BPRD usually sends them to me by mail…But Johann decided to deliver them personally…"

Abe explained, tried to lighten up the mood.

But the ectoplasmic man and the demon glared at each other in a way that made Abe feel a small chill on the back of his neck.

"…Just to catch up. You know?"

He added, giving a nervous laugh. Johann seemed to give a small nod in agreement, also deciding that it would be better to calm down a bit.

"Zats right, _Herr_boy. Ah haven't zeen Abrraham forr a long time, so ah thought…"

"HEY!"

Hellboy yelled while pointing a red finger in the German's direction.

"Say _herr_ anything one more time and I'll smash through your german head."

The red man growled, making Johann give a small daring step forward, as if they were two lions ready to jump on each other.

Abe was the one standing in the middle.

"Uh…I'm…Sorry to interrupt. But shouldn't we…er Perhaps be looking for Liz?"

Both men paused and glanced at Abe. The blue skinned man continued.

"It's…getting dark. And it seems that she is all alone out there in the woods…"

His huge dark eyes shifted between the two angry creatures who now stared at each other.

"Abrraham iz correct. We must find Liz. It'z not safe to be out therre at ziss time."

Hellboy eyed Johann from head to toe and ended up nodding in agreement.

"Right. Let's get going, then."

Abe nodded and exited the kitchen, grabbing his black coat.

Johann was about to leave too when suddenly a red finger pressed against the glass sphere that kept his soul from flying away.

"And don't you dare bossing me around, fishbowl."

Hellboy said with an angry smirk.

"Ah have no intention of bossin' anyone arround, Herrboy. Now take yourr digit off of me."

Johann replied.

Hellboy narrowed his eyes at him and stepped back, letting him pass.

Which he did, leaving the demon alone in the kitchen.

"_It's Hellboy, you prick."_

His nose suddenly wrinkled with disgust.

"And why does it smell like rotten eggs in here?"

Hellboy asked with outrage as the three of them left the house, gently closing the door behind them.

The place suddenly went silent; one would think it was empty.

But inside her bedroom, Ms. Greenrow sat on her bed, her pale eyes staring blankly at the door in front of her while holding her cane with both of her hands.

Her head was shaking as if disappointed with something. Or someone.

"I told that boy not to leave without tellin' me first."

She calmly said, sighing a bit.

"Now he and his friends are all goin' to die, aren't they?"

The room was dark, and all that illuminated it was the pale moonlight that occasionally would light the bedroom.

A tall figure stood right in front of her, the moonlight hitting against the strange creature, making it the shiniest thing in the room.

Its teeth showed in a large mischievous grin.

"_Yes."_ It simply answered. 

_"And in return you shall keep living, Katherine Greenrow."_

It smiled. _"As always."_

The old woman opened her mouth to speak again. But she knew it was too late.

The Angel of Death had left.


	5. THE RAVEN

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**THE RAVEN.  
**

* * *

Elizabeth quickly regretted walking away from Hellboy the moment she heard him calling out her name.

She thought about stopping more than once.

But a part of Liz knew that if she didn't take some time to think about her life, she'd go mad.

So she kept walking. Her eyes filled up with tears as she heard Hellboy's desperate voice.

She had involuntary hick-ups and tears ran down her face while she passed with her coat's sleeve under her nose.

Liz was so upset she didn't even think about where she should go. Maybe she'd visit Abe. He was always a good listener.

And she really needed to be listened right now.

Elizabeth walked deeper into the woods, placing her hands inside her long jacket's pockets, staring at the grass under her feet.

She couldn't hear Hellboy anymore. She wondered if he'd fallow her, and she even glanced over her shoulder. But no. Nothing.

So, Liz just focused on her destination, trying to ignore the cold.

After those trees, there would be a small loch and after that small loch there would be a small house, where Abraham and Ms. Greenrow lived.

She was happy for Abe. He'd managed to live a decent and normal life with that lovely, but strong old woman. He even seemed happier than she was.

As Liz walked, she realized that the woods didn't seem to end.

It usually took about ten minutes to get to the other side and yet, it felt like Elizabeth had been walking for hours.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she slowly came to a stop.

Her dark eyes looked up, searching for the North Star to guide her, but the trees were too tall, and Elizabeth couldn't see a thing.

She found herself breathing heavily, afraid and alarmed, rubbing her arms with way too much strength.

Liz was lost.

Her eyes widened once she heard a small sound coming somewhere above her.

She looked up again, with some foolish hope of finding another person there.

But all she found was a black raven.

Liz sighed with disappointment, feeling foolish and dumb.

But that wasn't just a regular raven.

Its eyes had a bright red color and both shined like small suns, illuminating her, as if those eyes were two spotlights.

And while she expected it more closely, Liz could swear that there was smoke coming out from his beak.

"Fallow me."

The raven said without opening his beak. It had a soothing and familiar voice that made Liz feel a small chill.

After that, it opened its wings and flew away, leaving a trail of gray smoke behind him.

Elizabeth furrowed her eyebrows a bit, wondering if she should be following birds at that time.

She was lost. She needed to get out of there. Maybe that raven was just some goblin trying to prank her.

But who knew? Perhaps that raven could show her the way back home.

Liz slowly gave a few steps forward, still unsure of whether or not that bird would help her.

But then, Elizabeth started running after the bird whose eyes shined the dark path in front of it.

"Where are we going?" She asked. But no answer was heard.

Instead something else reached the woman's ears. Elizabeth frowned.

It was music.

Liz could hear it. There violins, the drums, and a cheerful flute played what sounded like Celtic music.

A village throwing a party perhaps? Elizabeth's lips slowly turned into a hopeful smile.

The raven really was showing her the way back to safety. She could see strong yellow lights already.

People were dancing, she could see silhouettes between the trees moving cheerfully and full of energy…

But once she stepped out of the trees, her smile slowly faded away.

The lights didn't come from houses; instead they came from several ravens whose eyes shined brightly and intensely.

There were hundreds of them on the tree branches, as if they were mere leaves, staring at the round open space in the middle.

There on the grass people danced. But they weren't human. They didn't look anything like humans now that Liz saw them up-close.

Their bodies were made of wood, as if they were mere puppets. But they were unfinished.

They had no faces, they had no color. They truly looked like trees that had just decided to get up and start dancing.

The instruments were also being played by those unfinished things; better yet the puppets were the instruments.

A few of them had strings on their chests and they played them with their wooden fingers or branches, others cheerfully tapped their hands against their wooden stomachs…

But none of those things shocked Elizabeth more than the person whose shoulder the raven with the red eyes had landed on.

Golden eyes stared at her without blinking while dark lips curled into an angry smirk.

Liz felt her heart drop down to her stomach.

"It...It can't be…Prince Nuada?"

The pale being sat on a throne made out of wood, with long branches that looked like sun rays around him.

His clothes appeared to be of pure gold and shined under the light provided by the ravens.

"Yes, Your eyes do not fool you, Elizabeth Sherman."

Nuada said. He had an eyeball between his fingers which he held in front of the raven on his shoulder nonchalantly.

The bird pecked the thing with its beak, pulling out the optic nerves and devouring them.

Liz was both disgusted by that scene and afraid to know where that eyeball had come from.

She glanced at the dancing puppets that separated her from the prince.

One of them had a small, round crater on its head.

Elizabeth swallowed hard.

"It is so nice of you to finally join us."

The prince said while calmly getting up from his throne, letting the raven swallow the whole eyeball while thick smoke came out from its mouth.

"To tell you the truth, I was expecting to meet your partner here,"

He calmly walked through the small crowd without needing to dodge the dancing figures. It was as if they were all synchronized, like a play of sorts.

Nuada stood in front of Elizabeth now, looking down at her with a blank expression.

Liz just kept staring at him, feeling both confused and scared.

Yet, her lips were a mere straight line, and she tried her best to not look nervous.

She was good at that. Not looking scared. But Nuada...He seemed to be able to smell fear.

"But you'll do just fine."

Liz's eyebrows furrowed a bit, wondering how that creature could be alive.

Nuada's cold hand suddenly grabbed her chin tightly, pressing his long fingers against her cheek.

It hurt Elizabeth. And she considered burning the whole forest down and burning the prince with it and just ending it all.

But she couldn't. It was too dangerous. Too reckless.

Nuada leaned closer to her; their faces were inches away from each other.

He grinned sarcastically.

"Despair, Elizabeth Sherman. Scream and despair with fear as I take your fire and your life. Make him hear you. Make Anung un Rama come to me."

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth.

"Fuck you." She hissed.

She could be scared. But she was no damsel in distress.

Nuada titled his head a bit to the side and grabbed her by the throat, tightly.

Elizabeth opened her mouth, gasping for air. Her head fell back and now she could perfectly see the stars.

Her eyes widened a bit at the sight of the North-star. Where had it been when she needed it the most?

And suddenly the raven was in front of her face, standing on Nuada's wrist.

Liz could see its eyes perfectly now. They burned like a wild fire. They were so beautiful.

It opened its beak wide,

And it sucked the fire out of Elizabeth Sherman.

She could feel the power and energy leaving her body…And it hurt.

Her eyes widened to their maximum as she felt her body turning cold.

Liz screamed. She screamed like never before and it burned her lungs and it hurt her throat.

Nuada didn't react, his hand didn't shake and the raven didn't stop.

It wouldn't stop until it finished feeding on Liz's power.

The music kept playing under her screams, and the puppets kept dancing as if nothing was happening.

Liz's skin turned pale, her lips turned blue and her eyes slowly closed as she felt her energy fading.

First things became blurry.

And then…

Everything went dark.

* * *

_Sorry it took so long to write these last chapters people. School likes to consume my time. But I am very thankful to those who keep reading and leaving me reviews. Thank you very much, all of you. You make me want to keep on writing these. :)  
_


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